


Beneath A Moonless Sky

by IllusiveWritings



Category: DC Comics, Justice League (2017), Wonder Woman (Movies - Jenkins), Wonder Woman - All Media Types
Genre: Aftercare, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, BDSM, Bondage, Breathplay, Canon Bisexual Character, Edgeplay, Edging, Eventual Happy Ending, Explicit Fanart, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fanart, Fluff and Angst, Implied Sub Drop, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Japanese Rope Bondage, Kinbaku, Light BDSM, Light Dom/sub, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mild Sexual Content, Orgasm Control, Orgasm Denial, Power Exchange, Power Imbalance, Rope Bondage, Sexual Content, Shibari
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:48:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26597065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IllusiveWritings/pseuds/IllusiveWritings
Summary: Tie in for The Quantum Particle Of Love, set early in the story.A few months after Barry has traveled back in time to save Steve from certain death, Diana finds the courage to talk about that night and the choice Steve had made to sacrifice himself to save the world, leaving her behind to fend for herself in Man's World.
Relationships: Diana (Wonder Woman)/Steve Trevor
Comments: 27
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shipsnthenight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shipsnthenight/gifts).



> A plot bunny that wouldn't let me go no matter how hard I tried to not think about it.  
> Thanks to Shipsnthenight for bearing with me and my ramblings as I wrote this. 
> 
> Inspired by the song of the same title from the musical Love Never Dies - specifically the original London Cast Recording of 2010. Don't ask me why, I was writing Quantum while watching the musical some months ago and this plot bunny punched me so hard in the face I think I actually cried. Also, I'm totally trash for the Phantom/Christine pairings so... yeah... Not sorry about that, no matter how problematic the ship is. Watch me go down with it.

The evening didn’t start under the best terms and if the beginning was an indicator of how it would end, they were set on a rough, rocky path.

They were both in a foul mood, for different reasons. Diana had come home from work stomping up the stairs so loud Steve was sure he could hear her from the front door downstairs, fuming with barely contained anger at someone’s idiocy at work, while he had found himself swamped in technical issues while trying to keep the press in check as they swarmed him for comments and statements on the most recent joint intervention of Aquaman and Superman when they had came to rescue a Russian tanker ship in danger. Not to mention that a fringe of the American press hadn’t really liked the fact they had rushed to save a Russian crew and while both Arthur and Clark were still working on avoiding additional loss of lives and a massive ecological disaster, the major conservative news outlet pestered him, asking for a justification for their actions, trumping any other question from all the other journalists.

His neck got so tensed for all the hours spent looking at the webcam that he got a terrible tension headache that no amount of stretching would release. When Diana finally opened the door, he had just managed to shut off his overheated work computer and lay on the couch for a moment, stretching out his aching neck and back. She threw the keys in her purse and slammed the door shut behind her, before leaning against it and letting out a loud groan of frustration. 

“Let me guess,” he exclaimed sitting up on the couch so he could see her in the doorway. “Jacques messed up.” 

Diana threw him a killer look, one of those a person would never wish to be the subject of.

“Oh I wish it was just Jacques messing up, but now… this is way worse!” she yelled as she kicked off her shoes and nearly tore her coat off her back, messily draping it over the hanger beside the door. “This is the shitshow that keeps on giving my dear, and you what’s fun about it? It didn’t even involve Jacques!”

Two things startled him. One, she had used the word  _ shitshow _ . In the past three months, or even during their time during the Great War she had never used that type of language. He actually could only recall her using the world  _ fucking _ when Barry had dropped him in Bruce Wayne’s kitchen and that surely was because  _ he _ had used that word a least ten times in two sentences before she spoke. Second, Jacques wasn’t involved. That was even more disturbing that hearing Diana cuss. 

“What happened?” he asked her, dropping the sarcastic tone in his voice, trying to soothe her a little as she crashed on the couch beside him, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. She clearly didn’t care about the smudging of her makeup at that point. 

“Remember that shipment of statues that was supposed to go through cleaning and restoration for the exhibition we planned in May?” 

“Yeah wait… the one about the original influences on neoclassical sculptors? The one where you will place the originals or the calques of the originals of the Greek sculptures beside the neoclassical ones?” 

“Exactly, that one. Well… half the shipment is lost.” 

_ Wait what?  _ he thought. That didn’t make sense. How can you lose a shipment of statues? Wouldn’t it come in a container big enough to contain his old apartment in London? “Ehm, how do you lose a shipment of statues? Statues as big as a human being if not bigger?” 

She shrugged her shoulders and sagged even deeper on the couch. She looked small, almost like a child on the verge of tears, he had never seen her like this. No, wait, he had, after the gas bombing of Veld, but he quickly shoved the memory to the back of his mind. “Beats me…” she sighed and undid the tight elastic band that kept her hair to let it fall over her shoulders. “I’ve been trying to get the shipping agency to help me, but they said they delivered yesterday, but it’s impossible because those statues were supposed to be delivered  _ to me _ and only to me, I was the only one allowed to sign the transport document and the receipt, and I saw no one!”

“You even stayed after hours yesterday, hoping it would come in.” 

“That’s what I told them, but according to them, the container has been delivered and someone signed. Which means either someone yesterday signed in my place, overstepping the chain of command, or that the shipment was stolen. Either way, I’m furious, but they stopped answering my calls so I was no use staying at the office. Emilie also promised to dig into it and nearly pushed me out of the museum. And now it’s Friday, that delivery service doesn’t work on weekends, or at least their customer services don’t and I have no clue on where to start looking for that container.” A rogue tear escaped her eye and slid down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away with the back of her hand. “What about you? I saw Clark and Arthur had some work to do.” 

“I wish I could say it was easy, but I had a couple of sharks on my back too. Nothing like a lost shipment of statues, I had it easier I think. Explaining why two All American Superheroes were helping a Russian ship in international waters isn’t that bad after all.” 

She kissed his cheek. “Same kind of stupidity. You get all worked up but obtain nothing. And you waste time.” 

He nodded. “I had a friend back during boot camp that used to say that arguing with some people is like trying to play chess with a pigeon. It’s futile and it’s going to shit on the board anyway so, why even bother? At the third time I tried to explain that they were working to save lives, no matter their nationality, they accused me and you guys of conniving with the Russian government of something I didn’t even pick up and disconnected their call, it was too much. I was already trying to keep up with Arthur screaming at me to ask if the Russians were going to pick up those men because the lifeboats weren’t enough for all the survivors. I think he burst my eardrum.” 

“I can imagine.” Smiling, she relaxed against his shoulder and checked the time on her phone. “I’m hungry.” 

With a sigh, he leaned his head against her shoulder. “Me too…” 

“But I don’t want to cook. I’ve got no energy and my head is somewhere else.” 

He nodded. “Same here. And we have to go get groceries, the fridge is almost empty.” He took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the still lingering perfume she used when she went to work. “Should we order in?” 

“How about we go out?” she proposed. “I really need to change the scenery a little and… I just don’t feel like being cooped up the whole night here. I barely had the time to go to the restroom today, I spent the whole day in my office.” 

“Yeah I understand that all too well. I need some fresh air too. How about this, I go take a quick shower, you chose the place. I'm up to whatever pleases you.” 

“Sounds like a plan,” she replied. “As long as I get to shower too. I feel like I’m covered in dust and grime even though I didn’t even go down to the lab.” 

“You look lovely as always Diana, but I’m not going to deny you a shower just because I’m hungry. Come on, pick the place, I’ll get out of these stinky clothes and be ready as fast as I could.”

* * *

True to his words, he took little time getting ready and Diana didn’t make much of a fuss choosing where they were going to eat. There was a family own Greek restaurant twenty something minutes of walking away from the loft, she had discovered it not too much time after she had moved in years before and it had become her fix when she felt bouts of nostalgia and missed the food of her upbringing. It wasn’t the same, but the blend of spices they used was similar to that the cooks on Themyscira used, so it filled the void. 

Steve was more than happy to follow her there, and they ate and drank their fill. The good food and the quiet, relaxed atmosphere helped tremendously with both their foul moods, as they both improved a lot as the even passed. Steve’s aching neck and throbbing headache disappeared and Diana’s tendency to reply in soft monosyllabic grunts faded quickly once her empty, growling stomach was satiated. 

As they ate, Diana marvelled at Steve’s joy as he tried dishes he had never had in his life. It was a spectacle to behold, the way he enjoyed eating, his curiosity and how he quickly adapted his palate to tastes and scents completely unknown to him. Not even sushi had scared him, he often remarked that during the war he had eaten far worse stuff than raw fish so he was open to whatever people put in his plate. He would at least try everything, then decide if he liked it or not. And he seemed to like Greek cuisine a lot. He went through a full course meal and even had room for dessert. There was simple unadulterated happiness printed on his face as he chewed on the first forkful of portokalopita, a small dribble of sticky syrup oozing from the corner of his mouth as he groaned in delight. 

“Gods almighty… where have you been all my life!” he exclaimed after he had finally swallowed. Diana chuckled and twisted the stem of her wine glass between her fingertips. “Thank you Barry for hauling me up here in the 21st century or I would have missed the best food on Earth!”

It was an innocent comment as it could be, she knew it he didn’t mean anything by it, but as he mentioned Barry and his time-space altering run in the past to save him from certain death, the same death that had completely changed her outlook on life for the past ninety nine years, Diana couldn’t help but feel a stab of pain in her soul and a sudden sour taste that coated her tongue and spoiled the sweet wine that still lingered in her mouth. It was the first time he made such a remark about being saved at the last femtosecond, Barry’s words. 

And it hurt. The past few months had been such a bliss, a balm to her scalded and scarred soul that she had almost forgotten how it felt to know that he had died all those years ago, because having him there, alive and breathing and talking to her made her forget what it felt before. The deep, still bleeding and aching wound in her heart had suddenly been closed and secured that morning last November, when Barry had done the impossible.

But that one little thing he said pulled at the stitches and it hurt. She tried her best to hide it, not to let that sudden pain of hers ruin his night and his joyful mood. It was such a pleasure to watch him smile and enjoy himself now that he could, and not be plagued by the weight of the world resting on his shoulders like it was during the war. Even the nightmares that kept him awake at night had almost disappeared, for good she hoped, it was useless to bring the subject up now. 

Because they still had to talk about the night at the airfield. 

They had skimmed the subject, coasted it numerous times in the past months, but both of them seemed to shy away from it every time someone brought it up with quick changes in the discourse, often so abrupt it brought a halt to whatever they were talking for a couple of minutes. It was jarring sometimes, how touchy that subject was for them. It felt like a wall raised between them whenever something, anything really reminded them of that night. It wouldn’t stay up long, but it was a line none of them wanted to cross, not yet at least. It brought some awkward silence and some stolen, longing looks, but the tension between them would usually disappear in a plume of smoke and laughter.

Maybe it was time to force both their hands and have that conversation, but how could she bring up the subject without him backing away like he always did? Like she always did, to be honest. They had both neglected it for too long, it had been almost four months since Barry had done the impossible, it was time they talked, even if it meant arguing. 

She actually didn’t have to do much, Steve did most of the work, damn him and his innate skill at reading people and most of all reading her like an open book.

Thick clouds had gathered over Paris in the meantime, a swift cold breeze from the sea made the mid-February air even colder. It didn’t bother her, but Steve shivered, pulling up the lapels of his coat to shield his neck and throat from the wind. “Uhm, it was such a warm day, how can it be so cold now?” 

“The perks of living so close to the English channel. The wind can be ruthless sometimes.” 

He shivered again. “I noticed. I guess I’ll get used to it. Wisconsin can be cold, don’t get me wrong but it’s more of a dry kind of cold. Here it’s more… humid, it gets in your bones!”

“With the river and the sea so close, yes. But it’s nice to have them in the summer, it usually mitigates the heat waves.” 

“Do they come often?” 

She nodded. “In summer, yes. The climate has really changed a lot since 1918, for the worst unfortunately.”

“I’ll have to catch up on that subject too I guess.” 

He pushed his hands in the deep pockets of his coat and she sneaked her arm in the hook the posture created. They walked together in the night, silent, just enjoying each other's company. From an outside look, Diana was sure they probably looked like a normal couple out on a stroll after dinner, oblivious of the turmoil inside her or their past and the weirdness of their relationship, at least by standard human parameters.

With a sigh, she looked up at the sky as the breeze picked up and brought on the feeble scent of the sea, hid beneath the thicker and more persistent smell of exhaust gas that permeated the city, even the areas where cars could not drive, except with very specific exceptions. 

“It might even snow…” she muttered, more to herself than him. 

“Oh, really?” he wondered looking up. “It would be nice… Paris is beautiful when it snows.” 

“I wouldn’t be too surprised. Maybe not much, not enough to cause issues with traffic and such, but I wouldn’t rule out that we could wake with the rooftops cloaked in white tomorrow.” 

Again, they fell in a comfortable silence as they walked and soon they arrived home. The moment he closed the door of their apartment behind him, she felt the tension rise between them, the air sizzling with static energy. He must have felt the buzz of electricity coursing through her as they walked home, she was very aware her shoulders and neck were rigid and tight with repressed apprehension and most likely he had felt that rigidity as they walked side by side, so close that their bodies touched as they moved. The way he moved, he showed a very high alert, as if he was actively studying her in order to strike when her guard got down.

At first he didn’t say anything, he just followed his nighttime routine after they came home, just as she did. She could see him throwing tentative glances at her, as if he was trying to find the right time to ask her what was wrong. 

He found it as she came out of the bathroom, ready for bed. 

“Diana, are you alright?” 

Breath caught in her throat and she felt like her heart skipped a beat or two. “Steve… I think it’s time we talk.” 

He frowned. About what?” 

“The one thing we’ve been avoiding for four months.” 

It was his time to tense. Still in jeans and shirtsleeves, rolled up to his elbows, he stopped his in tracks on the way to the bedroom and turned towards her, the couch standing between them like a wall, the same wall she felt they had built around the subject. “Why now?” His voice was deep and gruff, almost like a half growl. It almost scared her, she had never heard him talking like that. And that question too, it was jarring, the way he had said it, blood iced in her veins. 

“Why  _ not _ now? It’s about time don’t you think?” 

Leaning on his palms against the sofa, he clenched his fists of the cushions until his knuckles went white, the sleeves of his shirt were rolled up to show the same tightness in the tendons of his forearms. Even beneath the thick beard he sported these days she saw the muscles on his face clench and release as he grit his teeth. “There is nothing to talk about.” 

That hurt. Gods, that hurt a lot. “Nothing to talk about? How…” Words failed her for a moment and she closed her eyes and took a long breath, trying to collect her thoughts. “Nothing to talk about? Really, what are you going to do, hide behind duty and whatnot? Wasn’t there any other way to do it? Couldn’t you have just waited for me?” 

He groaned again. “Diana, you can’t be serious! You know what was at stake, and you can’t tell me I could have waited for you! There was no time!”

“Did you at least try to come up with another idea? I don’t know, find a parachute or something…” His jaw clenched again, his deep blue eyes turned to a steely grey in the artificial light. He was angry, furious even. He didn’t want to talk about that, it was clear as day, but Diana couldn’t help but push the subject. She needed answers, and she needed them now. “Or were you planning on dying on purpose?” 

Oh they were going to regret some things that night, she was sure of it. 

He punched the back of the couch, the metal structure beneath the padding reverberated loudly from the heavy strike he dealt to it. “That’s not fair Diana, you know perfectly well I didn’t want to die!” 

“Well make me understand then!” 

“What’s there to understand?” His voice was cold as ice, so much different from the usual tone that made her feel like she was wrapped in a warm embrace. It was scary, so different from what she had imagined. Of all the scenarios her mind had conjured when thinking about the time they would finally discuss those events, she had come to expect more yells and angry screams, but the way he was keeping himself steeled and put together, that display of self control despite the turmoil she could clearly see in his eyes, that was indeed frightening. What more could he be hiding behind the perfect mask of the spy he had put on? How many different personas could he conjure in order to steer events and people the way he wanted?

Again, air caught in her throat when she tried to speak and it took her more than a breath to speak again. 

“Why. I want to know why.” 

“Why what?” 

She groaned. “Why did you leave me.” 

He grunted, shaking his head. “I had to.” 

That was a statement that left very little to be discussed and it infuriated her. He was adamant about his actions and decision of that night, that was very clear. If only he could understand that the situation was not so clear and set in stone on her side because she wasn’t in his head and she wasn’t able to read his thoughts and reasonings... if he didn’t explain them to her, his actions would forever be shrouded by her own doubts and feelings. It was like trying to understand a conversation happening in another room, with a thick brick wall between. And the wall they both had created around their shared memories about that night was thick!

“I know that.” 

“Then if you know why bring it up? Why now most of all!” he exclaimed. “We both had a shitty day, we both are trying to get over that shitty day and there you are, digging in the dirt like this? This isn’t like you Diana, you’re not one to wallow in the past!”

“How can you know that?!” it was her time to react, but she didn’t have his self control, oh, far from it. She actually felt a jolt of energy down her arms and silently wished she had her gauntlets on, just as a safety measure. Unbridled anger and divine power didn’t really agree with each other. “How can you know that? You weren’t there! You don’t know who I am!” 

He was taken aback by her words, both mentally and physically. He suddenly let go of the couch, his hands now clenching and releasing at his sides in fits and twitches, the tight control he had kept on his feelings and reactions finally faltering. He hadn’t taken that into consideration, the different time spans that had passed for them. A few blissful months for him, nearly a century of pain and grief for her. Mentally, he was still the same. On the other hand, she was not, by a long shot. 

“You can’t have changed that much,” he muttered, averting his eyes. He knew he was lying but he didn’t want her to know he knew.  _ Too late, _ she thought.

“Oh but I have, Steve! I have changed a lot!” If he could cut with his words, so could she. “And even if I never stopped loving you through all these years, believe me when I say that sometimes I hated you for what you’ve done to me!”

Steve paled visibly and his shoulders sagged, he slouched forward and leaned again against the couch. He swallowed hard and loud, the sound echoed in the room. “What I’ve done…” 

“Yes, what you’ve done. You left me, Steve! Do you have an idea how it felt? Did you think even just for a moment of the consequences? Not just for the world, but for me!”

“Diana I…” From anger to disheartment, the step was quick for him. She just needed to push the right buttons. In that case, his lack of foresight. 

“You what?” she pressed. “You didn’t even for a moment think of what would have happened to me, right?” 

“I thought you would have gone back to the Island…” he revealed. “That you would have forgotten about me…” 

“You thought… you thought I would forget about you?” she repeated, crestfallen. “Oh now I really want to know, because… you really thought I would just be allowed back to the island? After what my mother said when we left?” She barely managed to keep her voice to an adequate volume because she wanted to scream at him at the top of her lungs. “You thought I would go back and forget about you? After that night? Was I just another one of your conquests?!”

“No!” he yelled, way louder than before. “No! Never one of my conquests, not you! Never!” He dropped his head between his arms, and she heard him draw a long, struggling breath. “You were never one of my conquests.” 

“Then why did you leave me? Why?”

“I didn’t want to, Diana,” his voice was now broken, a complete turnaround from just minutes before. She knew they were going to hurt each other if she brought up that matter, but it was about time. No looking back, better to come clear right away and leave it all behind. They couldn’t go on with that sword dangling over their head by a fine thread, or at least she knew she couldn’t. “I don’t know, Diana! I knew you could go on without me, that I wasn’t that important to you…” 

_ Oh no you didn’t…  _

“I loved you!” It was her turn to raise her voice. “I would have followed everywhere you led! Didn’t it even cross your mind that maybe, just maybe, we could have defeated my brother  _ together _ and then disposed of the plane?  _ Together _ ! Wasn’t I worthy enough of a second thought that night?”

He stood with a grunt and with quick, choppy steps he crossed the room towards the kitchen and out on the terrace. She followed suit, he wouldn’t escape her, he couldn’t evade her anymore. She had let it brew for too long, the doubts and the ache had simmered and festered for a hundred years, it was time to come clean. 

“Look at me Steve!” she ordered, cold and stern. “You’re not running away, not now. How do you think I felt? I felt used, like...I don’t know… I felt like you just wanted me for my body, and believe me, the thought has crossed my mind multiple times in the past a hundred years!”

Still facing away from her, his shoulders hunched and he shuddered, as for the cold or her words she couldn’t be sure, his hands still twitching at his sides until he ran his fingers through his hair, but he didn’t say a word. 

“You know how it felt? It felt like you didn’t care about me.” At that point, she was more than ready to exaggerate the truth in order to get a reaction from him, who cared if it was borderline lying. If it got him to answer her questions and erase or at least help her make sense of a hundred years of self doubt and pain, she was even ready to hurt him more than he deserved. “It felt like you were done with me, like you had what you wanted and you were ready to move on… I felt like a wh…” 

“I loved you and I left you!” he finally shouted, completely oblivious of any prying neighbors that could hear him across the roofs of Paris. “Is that what you wanted to hear? Yes, I loved you Diana, I loved you so much it hurt just to think about leaving you behind, but… I had to. Both of us know why. Believe me when I tell you that it wasn’t my intention to hurt you but… I had to. I saw no other way and even thinking back, I can’t see it now either.”

Diana finally released a sigh she hadn’t realized she had been holding. 

“I know…” she admitted, finally. There was defeat in her voice. “I know… I just needed to hear it from you. I needed to know you weren’t just running away from me, because no matter how many times I told myself it wasn’t your intention, there were moments I’ve really felt like you used me just for that night.” 

He finally turned and faced her, with tears welling in his eyes. “I’m sorry…” He made a short, uncertain step towards her and extended his hand, shuddering once again. She took his outstretched hand and he gently pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her. It was like crashing into a quaking mountain, his body was shook by strong shivers and the trembling of all his efforts not to cry out. He calmed only when she also embraced him, tucking her cheek in the crook of his neck. Beneath her ear, she could feel the wild thumping of his heart slowly come down to a more stable beat. 

It was the most beautiful sound she had ever heard.

“You know, that night in Veld… I think it was the first time I actually made love to someone,” he whispered. “I…  _ you _ were the first person that allowed me to drop completely the facade and let me be myself. It had been years since I had actually enjoyed sex, let alone being so emotionally close to someone. You trusted me completely, and so did I. I said things that night I had never dared to say to anyone in my life, I… you allowed me to be free after so many years of constraint...” 

Diana felt the tears mount in her eyes too. She had hurt him deeply, she forced his hand when he wasn’t ready and she had broken him, that explained the steel resolution in avoiding the matter for so long. If she had spent nearly a century mulling over the events of those days, processing the memories over and over again, every time with different results, he hadn’t. It was all too fresh for him, and given the new world he had been unceremoniously dumped into, he never had the time to get a handle on what had happened to him and to them. 

She felt so stupid…

“That goes for me too…” she mumbled, the anger finally ebbing away, replaced by a sense of peace and relief she hadn’t felt in a long time. “I just… it was special, what we had that night.”

He nodded and pressed his lips to the crown of her head. “It’s still special. Every night, every day is special with you… even when we argue.” 

“I didn’t want to hurt you…” 

His arms around her tightened. “You didn’t. I’m a little bruised, nothing a kiss can’t cure.” 

She was more than happy to oblige. She could taste the tears on his lips, and her heart ached even more than before. He didn’t deserve to be treated like that… she had been so wrong…

They poured their souls into each other through that kiss, trying to heal each other’s pain, pain they had caused themselves. It was the first time since their reunion that they actually argued, and maybe the first time in her life that Diana willingly used her words to actually hurt someone. It appalled her that he had been the target of her badly repressed anguish and poor judgement. They could have talked about that night on other terms, when he had actually processed the memories, without hurting each other that way, so deeply and viciously. 

His fingers toyed with the hem of the thin cotton t-shirt she wore to bed, skimming the warm skin beneath. His hands were still shaking as he glided them to her hips and then to the small of her back, pulling her even close. She pulled back from him just a moment to breathe then kissed him again, with purpose, as if she was trying to say she was sorry without words. 

She knew he had accepted her apology when she felt his tongue slide over her lower lip just as his hands slipped beneath them and splayed on her back and upward, moving the thin cloth with them.  _ What is he... _

_ Oh… _

She suddenly realized that the tight coil of anger and anguish that had gripped her stomach while they argued had turned into arousal, gnawing at her insides with the same intensity as the fury had. The liquid heat polling in her belly made her ache for him, his closeness, the warmth of his body against hers through their clothes served only to throw more fuel on a fire that was already raging in her body and mind. 

Her hands grasped the cool cloth of his light blue dress shirt in the attempt to get him even closer. She needed to feel him, his proximity, like she needed the air she breathed. Her mind was devoid of thought except him, his lips on hers, his hands on her skin, his ragged breath on her face, his own excitement pressing against her, thick and heavy even in the constraint of his jeans. 

When she thrust her hips against his, deliberately dragging her body against him, he groaned, a throaty sound more animal than human. It reverberated in his chest and into hers, a strange carnal echo that set her blood on fire and turned off her conscious thoughts. There was only him and the need to have him close to her, to feel him alive and warm next to her, to breathe his same air. 

She probably never wanted him more than in that moment. And Steve seemed to agree with her. 

When she let go of his shirt to unbuckle his belt, his hands swiftly dropped from underneath her top to the back of her thighs and pulled her up so her legs were wrapped around his hips so he could move and set her on the table they kept on the terrace. He wasted no time and pulled her leggins and underwear off before he set her on the cold metal surface and slid both articles of clothing off her legs as she worked on his belt and fly. 

“Inside?” she whispered, pushing his jeans off his hips, but hovered over his black boxers. The thought of stalling the situation just to get inside appalled her, but if the cold wouldn’t bother her, it would definitely bother him. It was freezing cold out on the terrace, he would sure be uncomfortable. 

Grunting, he shook his head and shoved her knees open to nestle between them. He gave her a quick look, waiting for her consent and Diana nodded. The force of his thrust cut her breath from her lungs and made her arch her back into his chest. He leaned closer and kissed her, brutal and ruthless as he pulled back from her only to push in again, mad and desperate. 

Trying to find an anchor, she wrapped her arms around his neck just as he grabbed her hips for better purchase. Had she been human, she was sure she would wake up with some vicious bruises the next morning, so tight he held her. His blue eyes, veiled by arousal and the still bleeding hurt of their argument, pierced into hers like white hot daggers, cutting through the thick ravines that had grown around her heart to protect her from hurting once again like when he had died, clearing the way for something new. 

This was more than sex, more than just pent up lust, a roaring fire of emotions sparked by emotions reined for too long, forgotten and abandoned in the back of the mind. This was more than a heated apology after a vicious argument, this was…

This was healing. 

They had hurt each other in too many ways, but they were making amends in their own way, at their own frantic pace just like the way their bond had been forged, in the throes of battle, in the middle of what at the time had been the deadliest war to ever shake humanity. 

Diana wasn’t sure if it was the sudden change in mood or just that he was that good, but she found herself on the verge of her climax very quickly, and by the deep frown that distorted his face, he was just right behind her. Running on pure instinct, she moved her knees up, so her legs were wrapped higher around his own. The change of angle elicited twin grunts from both of them, his hips buckled faster and harder into hers, pleasure rising feverish from their efforts combined as they chased each other to their peaks, foreheads pressed together and glazed eyes still boring into the other’s. Diana was lost in the blue that reminded her so much of home…

Still holding tightly on her hips, he pulled her towards the edge of the table, jaw set and frown even deeper. The change of angle cut her breath short and forced her to avert her eyes from his when her climax washed over her in roaring waves. Her fingers grasped the back of his shirt so tight she feared she might tear the cloth. She barely registered the desperate buck of his hips for one last hard thrust and the long, muffled groan he suppressed against her neck as he followed her over the precipice. 

She had no idea for how long they stayed there, holding onto each other in the cold Parisienne night, just waiting for their breaths and heartbeats to calm, but for how long it lasted, it was heaven. 

“Am I forgiven?” 

His voice was merely a murmur, almost indistinguishable from the background noise of the city around them. 

“It was never about forgiveness,” she replied, just as softly. “It was about understanding.” 

He nodded against her neck, but said nothing. His breath still came in hot labored breaths, with a thin fog escaping his parted lips each time he drew air out of his lungs, and his shirt was drenched in sweat. He was probably freezing, but still too stunned and dazed to move. Not that Diana felt differently, pinned to the table by his weight and his hands still tightly anchored to her sides, his fingers pressing tight in her taut flesh. 

Lazily, she wound her fingers through the thick hair in the back of his head and pulled so she could see him. The adoring look in his eyes and on his face reminded her so much of a very similar situation, that one night they shared in Veld before disaster struck. Again, she felt the tears mount and every word she would wish to speak caught in her throat, but she managed to mask the sudden wave of anguish pressing her lips against his. He melted against her, his arms wrapped tight around her back. 

When he pulled away from her, he finally smiled. “I love you, Diana Of Themyscira. I’ve loved you ever since that moment I woke up on that beach, it just took me a while to realize it. It will never change, come hell or high water or another intergalactic invasion, but you have to understand what I did that night… it was for the best of everyone. One small sacrifice to save many.”

She nodded, but exactly convinced, but she nodded. “I know. I just needed to hear it from you. I’ve had nearly a hundred years to come up with millions of reasons for what you did, I guess I got too wrapped up in my own grief to see that deep down, you just died to save the world.” 

“I thought you were the one that would save the world…” he chuckled.

“We saved the world Steve, you, me, Charlie, Samir and the Chief. I would have never made it without you.” 

He shook his head, tenderly nuzzling his nose against hers. “It was always in you, never forget that. You’re more than what you think you are, I’ll never get tired of reminding you. You’re Princess Diana of Themyscira, Daughter of Hippolyta and Zeus himself, no one from this planet or another would ever defeat you. Stubborn as you are…”

With a soft grunt, she pushed him away from her. The loss of her warmth made him shiver as he quickly fixed his clothes, looking around. “Wait… did we just have sex on the terrace?” 

Stooping to retrieve her own clothes, Diana nodded. “I asked if you wanted to go inside, you didn’t even reply!”

“Oh… I hope we didn’t make too much noise… you know, the neighbors…” He was blushing furiously, obviously embarrassed by the implications. “I wouldn’t want to put up a show you know…” 

Slipping her underwear and pants on, she smiled. “It’s too cold for anyone to be out here doing whatever, let alone spying on us. And if we made some noise…” She shrugged. “Who cares. It was worth it.” 

“I just wish it lasted a little longer than a minute,” he mumbled, buckling his belt and shoving the shirt back into the hem of his jeans. 

With a sigh, Diana grabbed his hand and gently pulled him towards the door. “Best minute of my life,” she said, plain and simple. “Now, if you want to make up for lack of stamina you’re more than welcome for round two…” 

She couldn’t help but laugh when he let out a loud growl and pulled her towards him. With a quick motion she couldn’t predict, he bent down, placed his shoulder against her hip and pulled her up high, letting her dangle over his shoulders. Breathless, she squealed trying to get away from his grasp, but he held her legs tight enough that she would have hurt him if she actually escaped.“Steve! Put me down!”

“In a moment, Princess!”

He never called her princess. Never. 

And for some reason, that term of endearment shot down straight to her core, once again lighting the flames of her desire, but also stirring something completely different, a strange twist of her guts she hadn’t felt in years. She immediately stopped fighting him as if a major force compelled her to and before she could realize it, he dropped her in the middle of their bed, but instead of following her, he just stood and looked down at her from the edge, like a predator stalks its prey. His eyes burned with a dark glimmer she had never seen in him. “Round two?” he asked, as if he needed her permission to touch her. 

She nodded, stiff, biting her lip. “And three if you’re up to it!” 

Never taking his eyes off her, he walked back to the wardrobe where she kept her armor and weapons, and blindly reached for the hook where she kept the Lasso. Her mouth went dry as the rope now wrapped around his palms lit up, casting a golden, almost threatening glow around him in the dimly lit room. “Let’s see if you get through round two…” 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating has gone up, so has my performance anxiety. I went full 50 Shades of I know my shit of BDSM stuff, so if you feel like this isn't for you, better scurry away. I've written kinky stuff in the past but I don't think I've ever wrote anything like this. Nothing too bad happens, but hey, you never know. 
> 
> I repeat: canonically, Diana is a sub. And there was a lot of BDSM coding in her first comics.  
> As for Steve... I don't know. He just came out like this. It's not like I projected my own kinks in this, at all...  
> Yeah...
> 
> Have fun!
> 
> UPDATE 19/02/2021 Shipsnthenight has provided some art. See the end of the chapter.

A quick shiver ran from the base of his spine up to the back of his neck when he closed his fingers around the neatly coiled Lasso hanging in their wardrobe. The thousands of images flashing in his mind surely didn’t help, all the different ways he could use the divinely enchanted rope were countless, he could barely wrap his head around all the possibilities…

And by the way Diana was twitching in the center of the bed, she was just excited as he was. The tip of her tongue made a brief appearance to wet her dry lips, her throat constricted for a second as she swallowed. For a moment, he saw three loops of the rope wrapped around her neck, lightly digging into her skin, not enough to hurt but enough to restrict airflow, just that edge that heightened sensation… 

_Keep it cool Trevor, no need for a replay…_ he told himself as he stepped in front of her again, uncoiling a couple yards of the Lasso and wrapping it around his palms. “Let’s see if you can get through round two…” he said. “Take off your clothes.” 

Diana didn’t move, she kept looking up at him with glazed eyes and a blank expression he couldn’t really decrypt, so he doubled down. “Now!” 

His voice left no room to quarrel or bargain, it was an order, a barked one to boot. And he knew she responded quite quickly to orders. After all she was a trained soldier just like him. He watched as she quickly scrambled to divest herself, haphazardly throwing each article of clothing in different directions. He had to smile when he noticed her pants and underwear barely skimmed his head as they landed in the middle of the hallway, just beyond the doorstep. It was almost as she had tried to hit him with the bundle of cloth. 

Once naked, Diana quietly kneeled in the center of the bed. His fingers itched, seeing her so submissive, a side of her he had never imagined could exist. _This is going to be fun…_ “Turn around,” he ordered. 

She did as ordered and he quickly toed off his shoes to climb on the bed behind her. “Let’s see if I remember how this works.” 

“I had no idea you had experience with rope bondage,” said Diana, her voice nothing more than a whisper he could barely hear. 

“Oh there’s so much you don’t know about me Diana… but yes, I have some experience with rope bondage. Why, are there other means of bondage in this time?” he asked, creating three loose loops around his left palm with the Lasso. 

“You have no idea!”

“Uhm, we’ll have to discuss this later. Before we start though, are you alright with this?” 

She nodded. “Absolutely. This is not my first rodeo, believe me.” 

“Good. Now, let me work.” 

_Alright, how did that ropework started?_ He asked himself, stretching his neck while staring at her nacked back. He noticed a slight tremor in her, a twitch here and a flicker there. After a long silent moment, he finally placed the three hoops around her neck and gently pulled to make them tight. He kept two fingers between her skin and the rope, while creating a quick-release knot that would keep it secured but would allow for a fast unknot if need arose. “Not your first rodeo uh?” he whispered, testing the hold of the knot. As much as he wanted it to be safe, it needed to hold if pulled in a certain direction. 

“Far from it,” she replied. “It’s my first time with the Lasso, that’s true.” She gasped. “Oh… I guess it works with me too!”

“You didn’t know?” he asked, hooping the rope around her upper arms five times, pinning them to her chest, and sliding the rest beneath rope at the center of her back to make another quick release knot. “How long is this thing?” he marvelled, looking at the considerable length of rope in his hands.

“Standard length is five meters, but it’s enchanted so if you need more, it gets longer.” She took a deep breath and shuddered, apparently testing the strength of his bond. “And no, for your information, I never had to use the Lasso on myself.” She groaned. “Never saw a reason to do so.” 

“Not even this kind of use?” 

“No… Gods, it really burns! Anyway no, always standard rope.”

He sighed. “I don’t know who you… _played_ with in the past but I prefer when the other part can’t get out of the bonds by flexing their muscles to be honest.” He mavouvred her forearms behind her back and secured them together with a sequence of loops around them too, before moving to her wrist. It surprised him how quickly he had recalled that particular knotwork, it had been years - technically more than a century - since he last had employed that particular skill of his. He hadn’t really missed it or felt the need to seek a partner to indulge in this peculiar proclivity after that one that had introduced him to it, but that night it was something else. 

He watched Diana, naked in front of him, squirm a little as he tied her hands behind her back with another easy to untie knot and felt another surge of arousal wash over him. The bright glowing rope that held her securely in such a submissive position gave him chills. He barely refrained from giving her a quick but stern spank on her toned butt for trying to hold back whatever sincere response she was trying to keep to herself. 

He didn’t have to, the effects of the Lasso’s magic worked to his advantage. “I’m perfectly able to hold back my strength and not shred rope, you know?” 

He smiled, smug, at her bratty tone. So she was that kind of person, uh? Well, two could play the game. Having her at his disposal, free to enjoy and ready to satisfy every whim of his, having that kind of power over her… it was exhilarating. 

With a quick nudge he had her sprawled on the bed, face down, and he moved to lay beside her, keeping his palm open against the back of her neck, while also using his knee against her lower back to keep her pinned down. “I don’t like that tone, Princess…” He felt her shudder again and half-heartedly fight against the restraints and his hold. “Tonight I’m in charge, and things can either go smoothly and we both get a pleasant memory out of this, or you’re going to make me angry and no one here will have fun tonight, let alone whoever lives next door. I may not be strong enough to cause you physical pain, but there are many other things I can do to you that will have you begging me to stop in less than five minutes Understood?” 

She nodded, suddenly rigid against him, but it wasn’t that kind of stiffness dictated by fear, quite the contrary, she was aroused just as him, maybe more because she had no idea he had it in him. The surprise element was playing a big factor in the dynamic, he was sure of that. And maybe he could amp it up a little more. 

“Good girl…” he purred in her ear, before leaning closer to her face and gently kissing her cheek. “I’m going to leave you here for a moment, I’m not going far, just stepping off the bed. Can you stay still while I’m gone?”

The sharp intake of breath barely disguised the attempt she was making against the Lasso. She wasn’t used to this kind of approach… He’d have to inquire about her past _rodeos_ , as she had called them. “It’s not like I can go that far…”

That finally earned her a spank. Nothing too hard, just enough to make the skin sting and let it pleasurably tingling beneath his palm. The hand behind her neck wrapped around the lasso looping around the column of her throat and gently pulled. Her eyes opened wide when she felt the cord constricting the blood flow. 

“What did I just tell you, Diana? You either behave or you’re going to regret this. Understood?” This time he used a sterner tone, much like a higher ranking officer reprimanding a soldier. It seemed to do the trick as she relaxed and the glow of the Lasso flickered. “I’m going to ask you again. Can you stay still for a moment?” 

Diana nodded and let out a soft sound of surrender. “Yes.” 

“Great. Now stay put.”

He rolled off her and stood up from the bed, before he moved back to the wardrobe, pulled open a drawer and started rummaging through its content. In the back, he found a blue cotton scarf that had clearly seen better days. _Yes, perfect!_ he exclaimed to himself, before grabbing it and moving back to the bed and knelt beside her. “Lift your head a little Diana,” he whispered as he quickly folded the cloth into a makeshift but effective blindfold and tied it around her head gently, then he bent towards her nightstand and pulled a hair tie from the drawer there.

“Aren’t you going to ask for my safeword now?” she wondered as he gathered her long hair in a messy but effective ponytail. 

He stopped in his tracks, with his fingers still buried in her hair. “What’s a safeword?” 

“You didn’t have them back in your time?” She seemed skeptical. 

“I swear I have no idea what you’re talking about!” he exclaimed, shrugging. “Care to explain?” 

“I think the term speaks for itself, it’s generally a word not used in a sexual context agreed between dom and sub to stop the scene in case something goes wrong,” she quickly complied. “It’s for the safety of anyone involved and works both ways.” 

“I see…” He mused on the concept, a complete novelty to him. “I guess we didn’t have anything like this in my time, _stop_ simply meant _stop_ in my experience. But if you feel safer that way, I’m all for it. You have one you prefer?” 

“Not really…” She seemed thoughtful for a moment. “Oh, wait! _Sunstone_!”

He chuckled. “ _Sunstone_? Where does that come from?”

“A comic book. I’ll explain later!”

Her voice was so strained by impatience and anticipation it sounded like she was begging him to stop stalling. And Gods help him, that sound was glorious! He doubted he’d ever get used or bored of it, it sent tingles of pleasure straight down to his groin. 

Speaking of which, he still had to wait a few more minutes to be functional again - he wasn’t 16 anymore, unfortunately - but that meant more time to play. And oh all the ideas flipping in his head… he just wished he had a better knowledge of what she liked and disliked. On a very basic level he knew, but this was different. Personal preferences in kink was crucial and even in his very basic - and outdated apparently - experience he knew that. Also, he knew perfectly well he couldn’t hurt her. Not that he would have want that, he never had felt like he took pleasure in hurting his partners, but he wondered if _her_ previous partners had actually been that type of… what term had she used? _Dom_ … must have been short for dominant. He was sure she’d be very good at disguising the fact that whatever they tried was nothing more than a mosquito bite to her. 

Was it the reason she had asked for a safeword? Because other partners had required it and she was used to the concept? Not that he minded, it was a great idea most of all for those that liked a more _intense_ type of encounter. 

Wait, was she used to those too? 

He let out a sigh, looking down at the literal goddess splayed obscenely in front of him, at his mercy. _What have I done to deserve you…_ he thought, running a lazy finger down her back, tracing ghost patterns on her skin. The muscles rippled in the wake of his touch, her breath hitched each time he moved around the rope, losing contact for the briefest second. “What do I have to do with you?” he wondered, his voice reduced to nothing more than a murmur, but of course Diana had heard him and the Lasso, tightly wrapped around her arms glowed as its enchantment started working. 

“Whatever you do, don’t stop touching me…” she rasped. “Please…” 

Again, that tone, the strained begging… It was the sweetest sound to him. 

“That can be managed, Princess… Uhm, now that I think of it, I wonder what your mother would think of us, if she was caught in such a predicament!”

She blushed, a furious reddening of her cheeks that made him laugh softly. He moved the gathered hair away from her face and felt the heat of the embarrassment beneath the back of his fingers. “Look at you, I bet she doesn’t know of this… inclination, uh?” 

“Quite the contrary…” 

Steve stopped moving, curious. “Mind telling me?” 

She turned her head so her face was hidden from him in the pillow and he watched her squirm against the ties, bending her knees in the attempt to sit up. With a quick sweep of his arm he pinned her legs back on the mattress and kept her there, watching with glee as she struggled against the power of the Lasso. “It would be easier if you just answered, Princess.”

“I don’t want to…” 

Good thing he hadn’t drunk that much at dinner, because just a bit more alcohol in his body would have meant he would have probably burst into a not so dignified laughter that would surely have broken the magic. He managed to keep his mirth confined to a smug smile as he lay beside her, close enough for her to feel the warmth of his body, and kept the touching to a bare minimum. “No one’s going to judge. We all mess up.”

“Well, being caught tied up to a chair while the person your mother think’s is just your best friend is eating you out isn’t exactly just a mess up!” she revealed, gritting her teeth against the power of the enchanted rope. “Gods… that was so embarrassing…” 

“I bet…” he whispered, while his brain processed a very vivid image of a similar scene, but with him instead of the best friend. “Was she good?”

“Who? Kasia? Oh yes she was!”

He looped a couple fingers in the rope going from her neck to the middle of her back and gently pulled, slightly constricting her breath. “Better than me?” 

Oh, she fought _hard_ against the Lasso at that question. She didn't want him to know, that was sure. Or maybe she didn’t want him to get another ego boost, who knew, but she fought with all she had against the truth enchantment, pulling hard with the little freedom of movement she had in her arms and shoulders, trying to escape its vicious burn of the rope on her skin. It was almost amusing, watching her like this, so weak and powerless against her signature weapon, under his watchful and lustful eyes. 

She gave one last hard pull that caused the rope around her neck to wound tighter against her throat, constricting her breathing even more before she gave up the fight. “No!” she nearly screamed as she finally relaxed on the bed, the burning over and the glow of the Lasso dimmed. “No, not better than you. No one has ever been better than you.” He smiled as she struggled again, a minute effort against the Lasso before her true thoughts were pried from her lips. “Before and after Veld.”

The whimpering tone of her voice shot straight to his cock, a surge of arousal he couldn’t contain. Apparently, he was good to go now, given the rapid but expected tightening of his jeans. But there would be time later, he was just enjoying this little game too much, and the fact that she was speaking the unadulterated truth just added a spicy edge to the already exhilarating moment. Far from finding entertainment from other people’s humiliation, let alone in a sexual context, he had to admit that watching her squirm like this against a bond that truly hurt her and gave her a hard time was… beautiful.

There was no other word to describe the whole thing. Diana, the proud Princess of Themyscira, struggling against a bond of his own doing, naked warm and he dared to say ready for his own pleasure at any moment, helpless and ready to be broken… it was just something truly beautiful to behold. 

And only for him. 

He was truly the luckiest man in the world. 

“See, it wasn’t that tough. If you want the pain to stop, you just need to be sincere!” he chided her with one last tug to the rope, before he let her breathe unhindered. He watched as she gasped for the briefest moment, perfectly aware it was not for lack of air, rubbing small circles on her lower back with his palm, waiting for her to relax again. She writhed for a while, minute movements against the rope to get more comfortable despite being forced in a very uncomfortable position, before she finally let go and stopped moving. 

Or did she?

All of this time, he had been concentrated on her face, the part not hid by the makeshift blindfold, studied her reactions whenever she wouldn’t hide in the pillows in order to have a benchmark on how she felt without having to ask her, but in the corner of his vision he could see her hips wiggle insistently against the bedding, seeking the friction he needed to chase her own pleasure, which he wasn’t providing. On purpose. 

It was torture for both, he was barely keeping himself from turning her on her back, push his pants down and just plunge into her and chase his own release into oblivion, but then the fun would over in thirty seconds and he didn't want that. Not after the shameful brief rut on the terrace, most of all not after she had confirmed he was the best lover she ever had. It was time to uphold the title, to show her that if she had a kink, and it surely looked like she had a massive kink for being bound, he could provide. And enjoy every second of it. 

“Calm down Princess…” he whispered at her ear, his hand travelling down her butt and further down to her inner thigh. The thin sheen of sweat made her skin glisten in the low light of the bedside lamp behind him, a golden glimmering hue that was mesmerizing. But more than that, he couldn’t really take his eyes off her lips, slightly parted and wet as she gasped and whimpered as he slowly, torturously slowly, he moved his hands back up at the apex of her thighs, where she wanted him and where he desperately wanted to be. 

“Jesus Christ Diana you’re so wet…” he murmured. “You’re really into this uh?” 

She drew a quick, sharp breath. “Gods, yes!” she exclaimed. “You have no idea…” 

“Oh I think I have a pretty good idea right in front of me!” He couldn’t keep himself from groaning aloud, when he finally let his fingers wander up to her core, so hot and wet and inviting... 

His self control was beginning to quickly falter. The rough, sharp edge of the need to possess her body right there and then, in complete disregard of her own pleasure and comfort was clawing its way up from the place where his baser needs dwelled, the darkest corner of his mind was taking over and it took him all he had to keep it at bay for a while longer. No way in hell he wouldn’t take advantage even more than this of her current predicament, but for mutual delight. 

Speaking of which…

He snatched his hand away, relishing in the loud cry she let out when she lost the one point of contact between them, and sat up on the bed. Using the rope wrapped around her as leverage, he roughly turned her on her back, earning another loud gasp from her. The blindfold had been a good idea, he thought, as he watched Diana writhing as she tried to get into a comfortable position, even with her arms firmly pinned behind her back that way. She was forced into position in such a way that forced her shoulders back and pushed her chest off the bed. He kind of wished he had a way to also tie her legs too, but there would be another time for that. 

“Diana?” he called softly, gently running his fingers between the rope and her neck to check for tightness, flex to find it still in its original position. “Still on board?” 

He moved down to check every knot and place where the rope touched her skin as she nodded. “Oh yes, definitely on board!” Her voice was bubbly, almost giggly. She was really enjoying it. “Gods, it had been ages since I felt like this…” 

Smiling, he leaned closer and gave her a quick, sweet kiss on her lips. “Good, because the fun part starts now!”

Wriggling a little more, to get comfortable or in anticipation he couldn’t say, she smiled. “As if I wasn’t having fun up to now!” she exclaimed, cheerful. 

Steve felt a surge of pride and excitement surge when she smiled. Seeing her enjoying the whole scene was such an ego boost, he doubted Diana realized how much her having fun and actually taking pleasure in what he did to her was all he needed from this. The praise, the snatched truths, even the embarrassing confessions he literally extorted from her by using the Lasso were just the tip of the iceberg. Sure, it was all fun and pleasant, but that smile and the way her voice bubbled as she let go and released all power into him, that was what did _it_ for him. The absolute trust she put in him, while he was the one that deliberately put her in a state of absolute vulnerability, that was it. The pleasure he looked for was in the power exchange dynamics, that was it. 

And oh she gave it to him, in spades!

But back at the task at hand, there would be time to let the mind wander later. 

He took a deep, calming breath and straddled her legs, keeping them closed with his own. He made sure to settle in a way that his weight wouldn’t hurt her, just constrict her movement a little more and keep her pinned down on the bed.

“Why are you still dressed?” she asked, clearly confused.

“I didn’t really want this to end too soon, my dear…” Planting his hands beside her head, he heavily leaned on them, hovering over her. With the little movement he had allowed her, she tried to close the gap between them. Damn, she was starving for physical contact! He’d have to inquire about that at a later time, this wasn’t normal. The way she strained against her bindings to get closer, he could read the effort against the Lasso on her face and the ripples of her powerful muscles beneath her gleaming skin, it was almost hypnotic, but it worried him. For a moment, he contemplated untying her and stop the scene entirely just to avoid her to use her safeword, as she had said, to stop it when it was too late, because she truly looked like she was going to break sooner rather than later. 

Was that why she constantly seeked some sort of physical contact with him, be it just holding his hand while they were walking around? When was the last time she’d had someone in her life before his return?

_Jesus Christ Diana… what should I do with you?_

The inner conflict didn’t last long though. 

“Steve, if you don’t do something I swear you’re going to regret it when you untie me!” 

With a displeased grunt, he slid a hand behind her neck and wrapped it around the rope around her throat, pulling just enough to constrict her breathing and make her gasp in surprise. “So that’s the road you choose? I told you Princess...” He saw her shudder when he called her that way and he couldn’t help but smile. “You decide how this ends and if you force my hand… it will not be pretty. You want to test me and where I can get you? I’m all for it, but I really wish you wouldn’t do that tonight because I’m not in the mood for _that_!” 

He cleverly omitted the fact that he needed to _study_ her and her own preferences a little more before they got into more intense or drawn out situations but that wasn’t the point of his tough act in that moment. Also, he had keep himself in tight control because no matter how much experience he had - and yes, it was extensive, but it surely was completely different from hers and he admitted it was more than a little rusty - it was still the first time they _played_ and he was walking a very fine line and one wrong word or touch could make him slip and break the whole thing.

“So if you could stop being such a spoiled brat for a moment and let me do my thing, I promise, we both will have fun. But if you keep going on this way, I’m not exactly against leaving you all tied up and unsatisfied for the rest of the night. Am I clear?” 

Struggling a bit against the rope and his hold, she nodded. “Clear.” Her voice reduced to a strained whisper. 

He then let the rope go, allowing her to breathe. “Good girl… now where was I? Ah yes, driving you insane!” 

And that he did. Mouth, hands, words… every ace up his sleeve that allowed him to keep his clothes on, he used it, and before he even got to touch her breasts he had her gasping and writhing so much he feared she would actually break the Lasso so much she was straining against it. He left no inch of her perfect skin untouched from her neck down and on his way, discovered new ticklish spots and others that nearly made her scream when he barely touched her. 

By the time he reached her navel he had managed to turn her in a heap of quivering boneless flesh beneath him. 

“You know, I kind of wish I had tied you up like this that night in Veld!”

“I don’t think I would have let you that time to be honest!” she said, her voice barely a moan, as the Lasso glowed and lowered in intensity. She was being utterly sincere, if it was to avoid the deep burn or just because she didn’t feel like holding back he couldn’t know.

“And that would have been a wise choice,” he murmured against her skin. “Who knows what I would have done… I’m not exactly a trustworthy man.” 

“I trust you Steve…” 

“Oh Princess, you really shouldn’t…” 

Shoving a knee between her legs to force them open, he swiveled in the open v they formed and slipped his arms around her thighs to pull her close to him and his hungry mouth. The moment his lips touched her slick mound, Diana let out a drawn out choked scream that filled his ears as her sweet and tangy taste exploded on his tongue, a drug he’d grown addicted a long time ago and he would never even try to get rid of. Guided by her moans and mewls his tongue and fingers worked in tandem to help her ascend her the mountain of her pleasure to its peak, slow and tortuous, an agonizingly lazy pace that was quickly driving her mad if he had to judge by the way she ground her hips against his chin to get to the friction she wanted and needed to reach her orgasm. But he was too smart to let it be over so soon. If he had to suffer - because he was suffering more than she could think - she would suffer with him. Right when he would notice the telltale signs of her undoing, he would abruptly pull away and let the building ecstasy quickly wane away before touching her once more with ever increasing fervor. 

The sequence of Ancient Greek obscenities she let out each time were like a symphony to his ears. 

He had no idea how many times he had managed to edge her to orgasm only to unceremoniously pull her back to the beginning, but if her body and mind were at their last legs, so was his patience. His straining erection almost hurt, fighting against the tight enclosure of his jeans and underwear. Deep down the darkest corners of his being he could hear a fiendish voice whispering the most lewd and obscene things he could do to her now and damn if he didn’t want to indulge in those distorted desires… each second he spent with his clothes still on threatened to let his conscious self lose control of his actions. 

The game was about to end, much to his chagrin, but he was seriously about to lose it. 

This time he didn’t pull away, quite the contrary, he poured everything he had left to make her cum as hard as he could just as she wanted, but he didn’t stop at that. He kept on going through her orgasm, drawing it out as long as he could, enjoying every second of her thrashing against him and the Lasso that kept her restrained. He doubted anyone had ever dared to edge her like that, to the point she was almost crying for release. She surely begged, or at least it sounded like she had been begging for the last twenty minutes, only in a language he couldn’t understand. 

And now that she had what she had craved so badly, it was his turn. 

He didn’t even think about taking off his clothes, he barely dealt with the belt, fly and button of his jeans and pushed them and the boxers underneath down his legs just enough to free his erection and as he viciously slammed in her wet heat he pulled the scarf away from her eyes. The loud, throaty groan that escaped him seemed foreign to his own years, but he was sure it had been him… Gods, she felt so good, tight and wet and hot around him, willing and at his mercy. He could feel her muscles still fluttering and spasming from the previous orgasm he had coaxed out of her and once again he had to keep a tight grip on his self control not to spill himself into her welcoming heat and put an abrupt and undesired end to everything he had build up to. 

Her glazed, glistening eyes wandered in the sudden light to find his, and when they finally locked their gazes he was absolutely sure she was the _one_ for him, the one and only, one and done. Diana had ruined sex with other women for him. There they were, connected in the most intimate ways, soul gazing into soul and she was the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on, sweat, tears and flushed skin and all. 

Feeling his own impending release building in his guts, he leaned heavily on his left forearm and once again grasped the rope around her neck and pulled it tight enough it made a dent in the soft skin of her throat, and slipped his other hand between until his thumb brushed against her clit. 

“I’ll count to ten, Princess.” He did his best to school his voice into a tone sharp as a knife. “If you don’t cum again you’ll face the consequences.”

With that he slammed his hips against hers with renewed energy and strength, earning a strained gasp and a moan that nearly covered his counting timed with ruthless thrusts. “One…” 

Steve could feel her fighting hard against him… 

“Two…” 

One moment trying to get away from his relentless assault and the next chasing him as he moved away only to thrust back into her with reckless abandon. 

“Three…” 

She was quickly losing control, for a moment he feared she was going to pass out but he knew better, he didn’t let go of the Lasso in his hand. 

“Four…” 

When he saw her eyes close, he yanked hard on the rope and slammed into her again, doubling his effort. “Look at me!” he ordered through clenched teeth. 

“Five…” 

Tears were welling in her eyes and once again the fleeting thought of dropping the act and let her go flashed in his lust fogged brain. 

“Six…” 

But Diana held his gaze, her eyes two deep dark pools of love and desire that threatened to swallow him whole. 

“Seven…” 

God, this was harder than he remembered. No matter the steel-strong determination, his body was failing him. 

“Eight…” His throat constricted and…

There it was! Her hips shot up against his hand and him, ground hard, sought more of him, her muscles fluttered again around him and…

“Nine…” He wasn’t really sure it was his voice anymore at that point and…

“Ten!” He shouted and Diana went rigid against him, eyes tight shut and lips parted in a silent gasp, her body convulsing in the strong throes of a second even more powerful orgasm, just as his own release overtook and shook him from head to toe, breath cut short in his throat. 

Before he lost it completely in the aftershocks of his climax, he let go of the Lasso and pulled on the knot so it came undone. The glowing rope turned back into its normal state as he fumbled to get at all the knots behind her back and untie her in a hurry. He had to set her free fast, because she was crashing, he could see it in the hunched shoulders and gasping breath, hear it in the uneven hiccups. 

“I’m here Diana…” he whispered in her ear as he rolled on his side and pulled her with him so he could have better access to the knots behind her. He finally got to the one around her hands and quickly set her free and her arms shot around his chest as he threw the enchanted rope away from her sight. “I’m here…” he murmured again, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and pulling her close to him. He let her hide her face in the crook of his neck and held her even tighter. “You’re safe Diana.” 

Tears were flowing copiously now and her body was trembling against his. She was crashing hard…

 _Damn I shouldn’t have pushed her so hard…_ he thought, fighting against the bedsheets to get her beneath the thick duvet to keep her warm. She said nothing through the jostling, but he felt her relax a little once he had wrapped her around the warm blanket. 

“Everything’s alright Diana, it’s over…” he kept whispering tender words of reassurance in her ear as she cried hard into his chest. 

He knew that was a possibility. Sometimes people subjected to that kind of… situation would feel a sudden sense of release, more often than not emotional more than physical and ugly, unstoppable crying was one possible outcome. It had never happened to him when he indulged in that kind of play in the past, but he knew it could happen. The best course of action was just let her calm down on her own, allow her to let go of all the anguish he had accidentally caused so they could talk. Because they needed to talk, what he had been able to deduce that night terrorized him. 

When was the last time Diana had actually _let go_ completely with anyone? With herself even! How much pain and fear and anguish had she piled up through the years, with no one to share the weight with her? 

Slow and gently he pried her hand from his shirt and held it tight in his, taking the chance to examine the signs the rope had left on her skin. Minor indentation that would disappear soon, along with the redness. With the other hand, he moved her hair away from her neck to check there too and found the same situation, despite the rough treatment he had reserved for her throat. By morning, every mark would be gone. 

Patiently, he held her tight against him for endless minutes as she slowly calmed down without letting her fall asleep on him. There was no haste, but he wanted to make sure she would be comfortable for the night before letting her rest for the night. Gods knew she needed it. 

“Diana?” he muttered after a while. “Diana, I’m going to get you some water, do you need anything from the kitchen?” She shook her head, but when he made a move to get up, her grip on him tightened. He sighed and gently kissed the crown of her head. “I’ll be gone a moment. Just a moment and I’ll be back. Come on Angel, we both need some water.” 

“Just a moment…” she whispered in return. 

“Yes Diana, just a moment. Will you let me go just for a moment please?” 

It worked. She let him go and much to his surprise, even sat up on the bed, running her fingers through her hair and pulling the tie away. Color was returning quickly to her face and she seemed calmer, if only a little upset. The redness in her eyes betrayed the total chaos of her mind though. He quickly stood and pulled his pants up, then went looking for her clothes. He found the t-shirt discarded beside the bed, but had to fetch her leggins and underwear in the hallway. When he returned with her things, she was almost smiling, eyes fixated on a faraway point on the wall behind him. “Here, let me help you,” he told her. 

With a sigh, Diana slipped closer to the edge of the bed and let him help her slide into her sleeping attire. Steve used that moment to inspect even more closely the ligature markings. Once again, he didn’t find anything that denoted any kind of permanent damage, just a mild redness and the now less prominent indentation left by the rope. He ran his palms on her arm up and down a couple of times, looking straight into her eyes. “You should get cleaned up, if you want we can deal with that now and I'll fetch the water later. Whatever you feel is best…” 

She nodded. “You’re right. We should probably change the linens too…” 

“That can wait until morning. Right now, we both need to get comfortable and rest. You think you can walk?” 

Another nod, but she didn’t look very convinced of her capabilities. “I… I think I need some help. You fucked my brain to scrambled eggs…” she finally smiled, sincerely. 

Relieved to hear her joke, he smiled in return and gave her a quick kiss on her forehead. “Whenever you feel up to it, my dear. Now come…” 

A quick shared shower later, and they found themselves on the couch, wrapped together in the duvet from the bed, Notting Hill playing on Netflix, but neither of them was paying attention to it as they held onto each other tight. Come morning, they would talk, now it was just time to heal.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now everyone go and read Sunstone because it's a masterpiece and you all need to read it because I say so. It's free on deviantart, you just need to search "sunstone deviantart" on Google.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess some aftercare is due. No smut this time, I didn't have it in me. I fear it's going to take me another 5 years to recharge the smut batteries, I gave it all!

When Steve woke up the next morning, he couldn’t move. Not that he really wanted to, but even if he wanted, no way he’d wake Diana. They had fallen asleep on the couch and she was still deep in dreamworld, nestled between the back of the couch and his chest, duvet pulled up to her chin. Usually a light sleeper who moved a lot during the night, he doubted she had even turned her head as she slept. 

Her left hand was tightly clasped around the neckline of his t-shirt. Still drowsy, he smiled as he moved her hair away from her face. He would have never thought she could be this possessive, but after last night, some aspects of her character were clearer. 

She was right, she had changed to a point he couldn’t say he knew her, not anymore at least. The past ninety nine years had changed and shaped her in ways he had yet to see. The past four months had been nothing else but idyllic, if he didn’t count the everyday struggle of adapting to a foreign world and time, but exactly because nothing bad had happened in those four months since Barry had hauled him up to 2017 and they had never argued, not even about what to eat for dinner. He had almost only witnessed the jolly side of Diana, and if there was something that he had learned that night, other than she loved to be tied up and bossed around - to put it mildly - in the bedroom, but that there was a darker side to her that he never had the chance to see up to a few hours before. 

And he was convinced he was at least a little responsible for that.

More than a little.

But as she rested, tucked comfortably against him, it looked like nothing had happened. She was calm, her body lax against his own, her skin warm and soft, just like every morning on those rare events when he woke before her. Despite the inner turmoil that had shook her the night before, it looked like she had slept through the night without a hitch or even the hint of a bad dream. 

For that, he could breathe a sigh of relief. 

The sudden and complete emotional collapse that had shocked her, leaving her a sobbing mass of tears was something he wasn’t exactly ready to face. He knew it was a possibility, that one partner in his past that had introduced and guided him through such uncommon practices had told him it could happen, that sometimes the submissive  _ player  _ would feel such a surge of emotions that could make them uncontrollably cry for hours at times. It wasn’t uncommon, she had said, but it didn’t happen so often. Usually it coincided with bad moods or periods of intense stress that put the mind under emotional duress. 

And if he had read her right, she had put herself under emotional duress for years and it all came crashing down all of a sudden hours before. He was sincerely surprised she had actually managed to fall asleep, despite the bone deep weariness he had to fight and had almost lost the battle against the rush of adrenaline that had kept him awake way long after she had fallen asleep on him. 

He held his breath when she moved in her sleep, a short moment of shuffling to find a more comfortable position that ended with a long contented sigh as she settled once again in her sleep. Trying his best not to spoil the quiet moment, he gently traced the line of her jaw with the tip of his fingers. Another sigh escaped her slightly parted lips and she smiled, nuzzling closer towards his hand. Even dead to the world, she still reacted to touch, seeking it like a lifeline. 

“When was the last time you let someone in, Angel…” he whispered as he wrapped both his arms around her and held her tight against his chest, more than happy to give her all the physical contact she needed and then some more. 

He had no idea how long he spent in that warm, comforting limbo of drowsiness, as he lazily held onto Diana’s still sleeping form as an excuse not to get up. At that point he doubted she’d wake if he moved, but he wasn’t going to risk and disturb her for no reason at all. He’d wait until she woke on her own, and meanwhile he’d just bask in her beauty and proximity.

Because she wasn’t the only one that enjoyed cuddles, and he was sure he’d never get bored of dispensing them. 

While waiting for her to wake, he had dozed off again and got startled when she stirred against his chest, waking up almost instantly when he felt the first movements. “Good morning!” he whispered against her hair. 

She stretched and shuffled around a little, slowly coming up from her slumber. Glassy eyes looked up at him, confused and still half blind wish sleep. The complementary tiny rivulet of drool in the corner of her mouth and the corresponding wet spot on his grey t-shirt made the whole picture just perfect. She looked so… normal, but in the best definition of the word. Just a normal woman with a normal life and normal problems, without the weight of also being Wonder Woman bearing down on her shoulders. He wouldn’t want her to change or give up on that aspect of her life for all the money in the world, but sometimes he kind of wished she could just take some time off, because it tired her, not only physically but also mentally. 

“We slept on the couch?” she mumbled, her voice just barely more than a murmur. 

Nodding, he gave her a quick kiss on her forehead. “You fell asleep on me while we were watching a movie. I didn’t want to wake you so we just stayed here.” 

“Oh…” She looked around and with a sigh set her head against his chest once again. “Do we have to get up?”

“No, not now at least. I’ll have to go to the bathroom at some point, but not right now.” 

“Good… I’m too comfortable here, I don’t want to move.” 

Steve chuckled softly and gently carded his fingers through her messy hair to move them away from her face. “Are you sore anywhere?”

She gave him a tiny shake of her head. “No, not really. But I’m not sure I would be ready for a replica so soon.” 

“It isn’t in my plans either. I just want to make sure I wasn’t too rough.” 

“Oh no, it was perfect. I… I guess I just needed the release.” 

He nodded. “I gathered that. Has it ever happened in the past?” 

She shook her head. “No, never. But no one ever worked me up the way you did!” she exclaimed. “Where did you learn how to do that?” 

“I had someone show me the ropes, no pun intended. A couple of years before I met you.” 

“I see…” She wiped the back of her hand against her eyes to rub sleep away. “I suppose we have to talk about what happened yesterday.” 

Again, he nodded. “Yes, but only when you feel up to it.  _ If _ you feel up to it. I’m not going to use the Lasso and extort anything from you, we’ll talk when you want, if you want.”

“No time like the present then… What time is it?” 

“Let me see…” He snuck his arm outside of the warm shell of the duvet and palmed around the coffee table in front of the couch and grabbed his phone to check the time. “A little after eight. How about we have this conversation over breakfast? I could run down to the bakery and buy some pastries, you know… to spice breakfast up a little bit.”

“As long as you allow me to dunk the croissants straight in the Nutella jar…” 

Steve chuckled. “I’ll even let you finish the jar if you feel like it.” 

Diana chuckled. “I could take your word for it. It’s one of those days.” 

“We’ll buy more then. Come on, let me get dressed. Can you make coffee?” 

She pushed herself up on her arms and then set up from him. They disentangled from each other with a little effort - no one actually wanted to really get up from the couch - and finally stood. Diana moved to the kitchen slowly, leaning heavily on the walls and the furniture, still unsteady on her feet. He felt a pang of anguish and mulled over if it was a good thing to leave her alone while she was clearly still upset. He walked to their bedroom and quickly got dressed with the first clean items he found in his dresser and joined her in the kitchen. As slow as she was moving, she seemed more stable now. 

“Will you be alright if I go out for a few minutes?” he asked her from the threshold.

She shrugged as she moved around, preparing the percolator. “I can hold my own while you’re out, if you’re worried,” she told him without turning towards him. “The sooner you go out and the sooner you’ll be back. I’ll wait here for you.” 

He nodded. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” 

True to his words, he tried to spend as little time he could outside. Luckily, there was a small boulangerie down the street that also made wonderful French pastries and when he reached it, the locale was nearly empty. Most Parisiennes were still asleep after all, so he got what he wanted and walked back home with a small packet with a selection of pastries in his hands. He wouldn’t call it a peace offering, there was no need to make peace about anything, he thought at least, but more of something different to break the routine, but not in a disruptive way. 

Also he got all of Diana’s favourite pastries, that would surely help to… sweeten the whole thing. They were not going to enjoy the conversation, he feared. 

When he arrived home Diana was dressed, sitting at the kitchen table looking at her phone. She looked more alert, her shoulders weren’t as slouched and he felt he could draw a relieved sigh. “Hey, I’m back.” 

Smiling, she set the phone on the counter behind her. “That was quick!”

“There was no one in line. Coffee is ready?” he asked, setting the tray on the table. 

She nodded and grabbed the tray to unwrap the paper. Before he had the time to pour the coffee in their mugs and take them to the table that she had already bit into a croissant filled with Nutella. Given what she had said earlier, he had anticipated her desires by getting at least one filled with the chocolate and hazelnut spread. He chuckled, setting her mug in front of her, and laughed softly when he noticed a smudge of the filling at the corner of her mouth. Before he sat in front of her, he gently wiped the tiny smirch from her face with his thumb. “I hope the selection suits your desires,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee. 

The look of pure bliss on her face spoke for her. “I am still going to dunk at least one croissant in the jar though.” 

“And I’m not going to stop you. Whatever makes you happy after last night.” 

Her shoulders sank, but as she bit again into the pastry, she smiled. “You made me happy last night. It was just… a lot all of a sudden. It wasn’t my first rodeo, but sure it had been a long time since the last one!”

“Too much too soon?” 

Diana nodded. “Too much. I don’t think it was  _ too soon _ , just a lot.”

“You could have stopped me, you know? You could have used your…  _ safeword _ and I would have stopped right away. I’m not in your head, I can only try to read you through whatever input you give me but I can’t know exactly how hard I can push, you have to help me with that.” 

“I know. And I trust you would have stopped if I told you to. Listen, I never sub dropped, it was new to me too, but I don’t think it will become a standard occurrence. Or at least I hope so!” 

“What’s sub drop?” he asked.

“What happened yesterday,” she replied. “It's… in layman terms it’s the very low after a very high.” 

“Like when you come down from an adrenaline surge?” 

Reaching behind her to open the fridge and take the milk out, she nodded. “That’s exactly what I meant. It happens sometimes, it can be scary but from what I know usually it’s not dangerous.” 

“I should hope so!” he exclaimed. “Or I would never even approach the subject of bondage ever again! I don’t want to hurt you Diana, let’s make it clear. I don’t know where I got the idea to be honest but I wasn’t planning on making you cry last night. At least not in a negative way.” 

“Oh I’m sure you hadn’t planned it, but please, keep getting those ideas!” she replied with a smile. “I’ll be more than happy to let you express them as often as you want.” 

“Jeez Diana not all the time!” He shrugged. “I know that there are some people that enjoy some degree of power exchange in their day to day life but just that hour last night was exhausting on my part! I’m not really sure I can do more than that, and not even that often.” 

She smiled and took a sip of coffee. “I didn’t mean it like that. Total power exchange on a 24/7 basis isn’t really my cup of tea. I like my personal space and my boundaries, if you don’t mind.” 

“Well thank the gods…” he murmured, relieved. “You just enjoy being tied up from time to time!”

“I do enjoy that  _ a lot _ , but just like you, not in a full time setting. Too much work, on both parts.” 

“At least we got that covered,” he said grabbing a pastry from the tray. “Are you sure that this  _ sub drop _ isn’t that common?” 

“To be honest, I’m not sure. I told you, it had never happened to me before last night. Not that I have that much experience, partners willing to engage in such activities were few and far in between so I can’t really say. We can look into it.” 

“Yeah, I wouldn't mind a refresher. I think my knowledge is a bit outdated,” he stated, feeling a half smile forming on his face. “As you said… few and far between for you, but for me it was only one.” She seemed curious, even intrigued, but she didn’t ask. After last night, maybe she didn’t feel comfortable pushing him into revealing things from his past he wasn’t ready to reveal, and he could only appreciate that sentiment. “Speaking of partners… I have to tell you something. You got me worried yesterday, and I need to know something.” 

“Worried about what?” 

“Physical contact,” he stated. Maybe he deadpanned it a little, but he felt he couldn’t really soften the blow. He was worried, he wanted her to know what worried him and why. “The moment you tied you, I don’t know if you realized it, your body started seeking mine in a way you’ve never done when we normally have sex. Or in normal life. Yes you’re cuddly all the time, but this was something more… visceral. So I’m going to ask you one question, and I want you to be sincere. I won’t accept a lie or a half truth as an answer. I don't want you to hide and if you do, I’ll know and the next time I’l feel like tying you up you’re going to pay the consequences. I’m I clear?” 

“Yes,” she said softly. “No hiding, no lying, no half truths.”

“Good. Now tell me: when was the last time you had someone to rely on? Someone you could come home to and unload the stress, someone that could make you smile after a bad day, that could make you feel good and give you some emotional support. When was the last time you had someone you could just hug at the end of the day and let go and be yourself?” he asked. “And no, Lois doesn’t count, she wasn’t with you full time.” 

She remained silent for a moment, thoughtful. Steve could almost hear her thoughts, as she searched her memories of the past century to find an answer.

“Etta died in 1961,” she said after a while. “So I guess 57 years. More or less.” 

“Jesus fuckin' Christ…” he snapped, banging a fist on the table in front of him. “You mean that you never allowed any partner you had between 1961 and last November to know about Wonder Woman?” 

Diana nodded, curtly. “And on that note, I’ve been mostly single for the past twenty years. Give or take. I actually stopped counting so I’m not really sure about it.” 

_ No fucking way _ . He thought. He raked his fingers through his hair, trying to find some logical sense to her words. “By choice?” 

Another nod. “Yes, by choice. I was tired of getting attached to people and having to let them go because they couldn’t know the truth about me and my parentage. Immortality is a curse, more often than not, you know…” she added, bitter. “On my own on the other hand, I felt better. No one to let down but myself.” 

“What the fuck Diana…” he gasped in disbelief. “No wonder you reacted that way.” 

She shrugged. “It’s not so bad. And it’s not like I was celibate in the meantime, I had a fling here and there! It was alright, not ideal but I managed.”

“That’s…” He had no idea why he was so angry, or at whom the anger was directed. Some at himself, for not noticing before and at her for torturing herself that way for so long, but some was definitely directed at her. “That’s bullshit, Diana! There’s no way you managed. Now I understand why Lois said you never smiled before Barry brought me here… you were unhappy! And it was your own doing!”

“I wasn’t unhappy, come on! I’ve never been the heart of the party anyway so…” She shrugged again. She was getting protective, leaning back into the chair and folding her arms across her chest. He knew the drill, she was closing herself off. 

“Diana, no person on this Earth is an island. You can’t tell me you were happy by yourself, all alone! I’m not the most sociable person but even I needed some company, someone to vent to. Damn, if Etta had a penny for all the times I vented on her, she would have been the richest woman in England! Or Hanna, for the matter.”

“Who’s Hanna?” 

He felt a lump form suddenly in his throat. He hadn't thought about her in months, maybe even a year at that point. “She is…  _ was _ at this point… Ludendorff’s secretary. We got close and… well, she’s the one that taught me some stuff what you saw last night.” 

“Oh…” she replied with a slight blush on her cheeks. “Was she… I mean did you…” 

“Love her?” he completed the sentence for her when he sensed her slight embarrassment. “No, love is too strong of a word to describe how I felt about her. SUre I liked her enough that when she tried to seduce me I didn’t say no, but that’s it. Also it was an opportunity to gather more intel. It was more work than pleasure, let’s say that, but that doesn’t mean it helped with the stress of the assignment, having someone close. Even if it was just for opportunistic reasons.” 

“I assume she didn’t know about you being a spy though.”

He shook his head. “No, she didn’t. But the war was harsh on all sides. Generally complaining about the war while posing as a German officer wouldn’t have been strange. And believe me, she had her own complaining to vent on me. It was a two way street!”

“I see… I was actually curious to know about how you got into this kind of thing, it’s not like it was  _ that  _ popular back in the day.” 

Steve chuckled and finally got to take a bite of a pastry. “I think you got involved in the wrong circles because believe me, it was popular. You just needed to find the right place to hang out.” 

“Yeah, but Japanese rope bondage only got popular in the fifties. And what you did last night looked and felt a lot like kinbaku*.” 

He shrugged his shoulders. “I grew up in a farm, Diana. I’ve tied a lot of things with rope back when I was a kid, what’s so different?” 

“Makes sense. So, back to your question. I’ve been mostly alone and at times lonely for the past sixty years. What does that tell you?” 

He took a deep breath as he chewed the last bite of pastry. “Well…” he started after he had swallowed. “It tells me that last night it was important to you on an emotional level because you needed that kind of total release of control since you held on it for far too long. It tells me that you get highly emotional in such situations and it also tells me you are in dire need of physical contact. And I’ll gladly provide it, as much as you need. But you have to promise me one thing.” 

“Which is?”

“When we do this again,  _ if _ we do this again, I demand you tell me if it’s too much so we can stop before you drop. Clearly, I went too far last night but you didn’t stop me, you didn’t use your  _ safeword  _ so I just continued, and it didn’t end well. I don’t want you to hurt you, never. You think you can do that?” 

Sighing, she nodded. “Yes, I can do that. But before you worry, it’s not like you went too far yesterday, that’s why I didn’t use the safeword because I didn’t feel like I needed you to stop. It caught me off guard as much as it surprised you. I told you, it never happened, and to be honest, it wasn’t really that bad, at least for me. I think I really needed it.” 

“How so?”

Diana shrugged her shoulders and leaned back against the chair, but didn’t fold her arms around her chest. She wasn’t trying to protect herself, her body language was more open now. “It was liberating. Believe me, it had been a long while since the last time I felt so… free. Most of all free of responsibility. I know it sounds counter intuitive, but it’s true! I let go of everything I usually hold a tight grasp on and it had that effect on me. It was a liberatory cry, and in the end I was exhausted, but you didn’t hurt me. Quite the contrary!”

“Are you sure? Because sure you looked like I did.” 

Shaking her head, she smiled and stood to pour herself another cup of coffee. “You said it yourself, you don’t have the necessary strength to hurt me. The Lasso does though, I had no idea it burned so much.” 

“Ah, so now you know how it felt when your mother interrogated me. But, seriously, are we alright about this? Because you got me worried, a lot!” 

“I assure you,” she started, sitting down in front of him, her hand reaching for his across the table. “We’re alright and I never doubted we would be. Looks like all I needed was some sugar to bounce back.”

“Yeah, your mood completely flipped once you ate. I guess I’ll have to keep croissants at the ready then. Or a jar of Nutella and a spoon! Actually, I’m surprised you haven’t tackled it yet!”

Right on cue, she bolted from the chair and to the cabinet to grab said jar, fished a spoon from the dishwasher and dug in. She had a sweet tooth, and Steve couldn’t help but laugh a little when she finally got a big spoonful of the spread on a croissant and bit into it. The look of pure ecstasy on her face was just too funny. Also, that twinkle of pure unabated joy in her eyes? That alone was worth the moment of uneasiness that started from her sub drop. 

Hell, he needed a fast track course on the terminology, how much things had changed and evolved in a century, even when it came about kinky sex. 

_ And who would have thought she would be into it…  _ he thought. 

“Listen, on a merrier note…” he started. “You mentioned that your safeword comes from a comic book! Is it something I can read?” 

Still munching on the pastry, she nodded and gestured to him to follow her into the living room, where she stopped in front of one of the bookshelves in a corner. There she selected a black and red large book and handed it to him. “Here it is.” 

Well,  _ Sunstone _ was the actual title of the book. He quickly flipped through the first few pages, full of colorful drawings of a young thirty something redhead lost in her thoughts. “Alright… guess I know what I’ll be doing today!”

“There are five volumes in total for now, one should come out next year I think,” she explained. “It’s already available online but I prefer comics in printed form.” 

He shrugged. Even comics were completely different from what he remembered, not only in themes, but also in the way things were drawn. “I think I’ll start with this one, then we’ll see. OK?” 

She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “You’re going to love it, believe me!”

Oh, he did. 

Not only the story was hot as hell, but it was funny and it drew him in like nothing in contemporary literature had done up to that moment. The characters were fun and relatable, even to him with a very limited knowledge of society in the new millennium, but luckily Diana was right beside her to help. 

By midafternoon, he was in the middle of the fourth volume, sprawled on the couch, completely taken in the story and damn all the ideas that were popping in his head… 

Diana was going to regret getting him to read it. She was going to regret it bad!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Kinbaku is the actual word for what is commonly called shibari. Shibari in Japanese simply means "binding" while Kinbaku means "tight binding" and to be more specific, Kinbaku-bi is the actual name of the art form of rope bondage. It means "The beauty of tight binding". And it's a fascinating art form.   
> How do I know that?  
> Draw your own conclusions. 
> 
> Also, really, go read Sunstone. I can't stress enough how good that comic is. And it's free online. 
> 
> Anyway, back at Quantum. Hope you enjoyed reading this tie-in as much as I enjoyed writing it. See ya!

**Author's Note:**

> Note: Diana is canonically a sub. She has always been, Dr. Marston put very explicit BDSM coding and references in the early WW comics. Fight me.


End file.
